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But yeah, I'm from Tulsa at least. Though after two years hopping continents, I can't foresee anything that will have me opting to remain in the state. Pretty sure I'll only be around long enough to make plans for somewhere else.

MacNN Handle(s): SpaceMonkeyAge: 28Height: 5'10"Weight: 135 lbsEthnicity: White.Sexuality: StraightRelationship Status: SingleKids: NoneReligion: Raised in a Catholic family, currently agnostic.Hobbies: Going to concerts, playing softball, running, hiking, writing.Profession: Organizational planning/management for a non-governmental organization working in the defense/foreign policy wonky space in DC.Fav Music: The Tragically Hip, The New Pornographers, Neko Case, Dream Theater, lots of classic rock and 1990s nostalgia.Fav TV shows: Currently: 30 Rock. All-time: Arrested Development, Seinfeld, X-Files, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Newsradio, The Kids in the Hall, Cowboy Bebop, Star Trek: TNG, Battlestar Galactica (new version), Mystery Science Theater 3000, Dr. Katz: Professional TherapistFav Movies: Stalag 17, Dark City, The Blues Brothers (original version), Zoolander, Wall-E, The Prestige, Young Frankenstein, Empire of the SunFav Drink/Beer: Great Lakes Edmund Fitzgerald Porter. I am also much too dependent on coffee.Fav Food: A well-made sandwich is a glorious thing. Fav Book: The Metaphysical Club (in the highfalutin category), The Bourne Identity (in the airport thriller category).Rockstar or Billionaire: BillionaireBelieve in Aliens: I believe they are possible. I don't believe we have interacted with them.Believe in Ghosts: No.Car: None. Public transportation, b*tiches! If and when I get a car it will be something incredibly boring like a Honda Civic.Macs: The first Mac I used at home growing up was a Quadra 660. The first Mac I bought for myself was a 333 MHz G3 iMac (Lime). My current Mac is a 15" Powerbook i7.Yearly income: None of your beeswax.Dog person or cat person? Dog person. Sadly, I'm not in a position to have one right now (work/travel/apartment building policies).Apples or oranges? Oranges.Aspiration: To be pleasantly surprised.Role model: My aunt.Deep dark secret: I am not actually a monkey from space.Interesting fact: If I was stranded on a desert island, and I could only have one person, one book, and one record with me, I'd probably die of exposure.Geek? Hm, not really. I dork out pretty hard though.

First Name: BenjaminNickname: BenMacNN Handle:
And I Tiresias have foresuffered all
Enacted on this same divan or bed;
I who have sat by Thebes below the wall
And walked among the lowest of the dead.Age: 31Height 188 cm. Suck it imperial systemWeight: Between 75 and 80 kg, depending on potato chip intake.Ethnicity: WhiteSexuality: StraightRelationship Status: MarriedKids: DaughterReligion: Secular humanist with Spinozistic pretentions.Profession: You can't call what I do a profession. Greatest Achievements: Memorizing the Rime of the Ancient Mariner.Fav music: Bach, Leonard Cohen, Bob Dylan, ambient, jazz of the 20s. When drunk, hip hop.Fav music group or person: How is this different from the above question?Fav TV show: TV is for aliterates.Best move you've seen recently : 50/50Fav food: It is, and always will be, curry.Fav drink: Coffee—black.Fav Alcoholic Beverage: Guiness, whiskey, vodka and tonic, gin and tonic, Korean plum wine, Heineken.Fav book: Ulysses.Superman or Batman? What is this, kindergarten?Rock star or Billionaire: Billionaire rock star,Believe in aliens: It's not a question of believing, but of accepting the evidence. Presently, there is none.Believe in ghosts: Vide supra.Car: BicycleMac: iMac, MacBook ProOriginal Mac: Ha ha ha. That old beast? A shopworn iBook—the first model, whatever that was. Deep dark secret: Please, don't bring this up again. Ever.Secret aspiration: To be a cult leader or international drug baron. Dog or Cat Person: You own a dog. You feed a cat. Political views Carlyle said that democracy was chaos with ballot boxes. Churchill agreed, adding, "It is the worst form of government ever devised, except for all the rest.Country of birth New Zealand.Current location South Korea.Elvis or The Beatles Elvis, of course! Greatest weaknesses Indecision... no wait... I'm too impulsive... no, no... definitely indecision.Greatest strengths I am a genius.

Figured this was ripe for an update, things have changed, including my ability to gain wight.

MacNN Handle(s): sek929Name: SeanAge: 28Height: 5'9"Weight: 155 lbsEthnicity: Irish and Portuguese mutt Relationship Status: Living with a beautiful woman who keeps me out of troubleReligion: No thanksHobbies: Video Games and BowlingProfession: Residential ContractorFav Music: Progressive RockFav TV shows: Simpsons (old), Venture Brothers, Futurama, American DadFav Movies: The Shining, There Will Be Blood, Alien, Requiem for a DreamFav Drink/Beer: Bourbon and a nice spicy IPAFav Food: Chow MeinFav Book: Reading a lot of Carl Sagan at the momentBelieve in Aliens: In general? yes Here? god noBelieve in Ghosts: I entertain the thoughtCar: 2012 Kia FortéDream Car: Mint-Condition '99 Honda NSX or Toyota MR2 TurboMacs: 2007 C2D iMacYearly income: I bought a Kia Forté, what do you think?Dog person or cat person? Cat person, but dogs are just fine in my book.Aspiration: To build custom furniture for people with deep pocketsRole model: My father. A man of great happiness who also lives a very modest lifeDeep dark secret: Diagnosed with ADD in fourth grade, parents declined to put me on Ritalin, I concur with that choice. Don't figure drugging me up to get me to fall in line would have made me a better person.Interesting fact: MVP of my High School soccer team, while playing goalie (keeper)Geek?: Been a member of a Mac forum for over a decade, so I'd figure so.

KIA is a lot like Hyundai. They both started off making rather chintzy cars and have come quite some way in the last ten years.

My GMC truck decided to take a turn for the expensive sometime last November, from then to a month ago I dropped something like 3600 dollars on repairs alone. I was also seeing around 16-18 mpg average.

KIA would not be my car of choice, but I settled on a Forté for several reasons. The warranty, both through the manufacturer and the dealer, was pretty all-encompassing...I even have roadside assistance for 5 years. The amount they gave me for my trade-in ($7000) was more than any other manufacturer would even go near. Lastly, most of my work is centered around our work van, a GMC Savanna, and while owning a decently heavy-duty truck has its perks I found myself mostly using it for run-of-the-mill transportation.

My payments are very low, I'm getting 32 MPG (about double the mileage), I have a host of gee-whiz features and in the event the KIA ends up not being very well made I have no out-of-pocket costs to fix it. Toyota at one point were viewed as chintzy Asian crap by the majority of Americans and look where they are now. So far I am fairly impressed with the level of fit and finish of my new car.

KIA is a lot like Hyundai. They both started off making rather chintzy cars and have come quite some way in the last ten years.

I knew that last year, but I'm guessing you didn't.

Originally Posted by sek929

KIA would not be my car of choice, but I settled on a Forté for several reasons. The warranty, both through the manufacturer and the dealer, was pretty all-encompassing...I even have roadside assistance for 5 years.

That's exactly what instilled me with confidence. You don't put out a warranty like that if you're going to eat it.

I'm a total car snob, but I'll admit my bias against KIA was unfounded. They are currently the fastest growing car maker in the US and it's easy to see why. They also have a robust partnership with Hyundai, and the similarities between certain models are unmistakable. The KIA Optima, the full-size sedan, is a pretty slick freaking car and would appear to be their finest product to date.

Black on black 4-door. They had it on the lot, and offered a decent amount of incentives (something about it being registered to be a test-drive vehicle or some malarky) so with my trade-in and the incentives the car ended up just a tick over 13k.

First new car, jumping in after all the papers were signed and seeing 8 miles on the odometer was a pretty grin-inducing moment.

The GMC served me well. 7 years without any big fixes then WHAM, it started to hurt me. I paid 9500 for it and got 7000 as a trade in. Not bad for driving something for 7 years and doubling the mileage.

Edit: Of course this was soured by the nearly 4 grand I had just dumped into it.

Black on black 4-door. They had it on the lot, and offered a decent amount of incentives (something about it being registered to be a test-drive vehicle or some malarky) so with my trade-in and the incentives the car ended up just a tick over 13k.

Is that with taxes? Because over 20k seems excessive from what I remember.

Originally Posted by sek929

First new car, jumping in after all the papers were signed and seeing 8 miles on the odometer was a pretty grin-inducing moment.

Oddly, one of the biggest things I was looking for in cars was solid iPod integration. After 7 years in a used civic with a temperamental aftermarket CD player I wanted something I knew I could listen to whatever I wanted whenever I wanted.

And a sunroof. The civic was my first car without one and I hated its guts for it.

Not much into a sunroof, though I wouldn't object. Have Sirius free for 3 months, then I most certainly won't be paying for it, it's kinda nifty but the audio quality is somehow worse than FM and it cuts out every now and then.

My new ride has actually made me locate my old 20GB color iPod and dust it off for the first time in years and years. I only use it though the audio jack though, when hooked through USB do the track names appear on the screen and/or can you use the steering wheel controls to switch tacks?

My new ride has actually made me locate my old 20GB color iPod and dust it off for the first time in years and years. I only use it though the audio jack though, when hooked through USB do the track names appear on the screen and/or can you use the steering wheel controls to switch tacks?

I don't know if that old an iPod is compatible, but if it is you should see the artist and track, plus be able to navigate it from the console or steering wheel controls.

Location: Iowa, how long can this be? Does it really ruin the left column spacing?

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Jun 27, 2012, 07:01 PM

Originally Posted by sek929

Not much into a sunroof, though I wouldn't object. Have Sirius free for 3 months, then I most certainly won't be paying for it, it's kinda nifty but the audio quality is somehow worse than FM and it cuts out every now and then.

They reduced the quality of certain stations to provide bandwidth for more stations. So basically the rock stations sound terrible so that they can have 15 Howard Stern and George Carlin stations, along with comedy stations complete with commercials. I love AltNation but adding DJs ruined it for me. Wife and I aren't paying for Sirius in her new car.

Originally Posted by sek929

Toyota at one point were viewed as chintzy Asian crap by the majority of Americans and look where they are now.

Toyota and Honda in the '70s and early '80s were chintzy Asian crap, but American stuff wasn't much (any?) better.

Originally Posted by The Final Dakar

That's exactly what instilled me with confidence. You don't put out a warranty like that if you're going to eat it.

Rumor has it the warranty is only applicable to the first owner, then it drops to 5yr/60K for the second owner (Kia dealership certified pre-owned may be different?). Almost no one buys a new car and keeps it for 10 years, so it's a safe bet.